“What are you going to do with the journal?” Gia asked.
“I’m taking it downstairs and burning it in the fireplace—”
“No.” Bianca jumped off the bed. “You can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“Because one of us isn’t a Bartolini. And that’s the only key to the past.”
CHAPTER ONE
Six weeks later, Bartolini Villa
HE NEEDED THIS EXCURSION.
He wished it could last longer—much longer.
Crown Prince Leopold stood in the lush garden of an Italian villa. He was surrounded by a group of lavishly dressed people. They all wanted a word with him. Why did he think coming to Tuscany would be any different than attending a social occasion in his homeland?
But in that moment, everyone’s attention gravitated from him to a woman who’d joined their group. Her bold makeup and flamboyant hot pink outfit matched her personality. He was grateful the woman enjoyed being the center of attention. All he wanted to be was just another person in the crowd. What was it about people always wanting what they didn’t have?
Just as his sister, the Princess of Patazonia, wanted a wedding that reflected her personality instead of a traditional royal wedding. But the queen insisted that tradition must rule above all else. Just as his father had said to him, right before he died:
Traditions are the bedrock of this kingdom.
Leo gave himself a mental shake. Now wasn’t the time to get caught in the past—in the regrets—in the what-ifs.
Right now, he had his hands full with his feuding mother and sister. The battles between the two headstrong women was a daily occurrence. So when he was invited to this wedding of a childhood friend, he’d ordered up the family jet. Since he was of no help back at the palace, he figured he might as well wish his friend the very best.
Leo moved away from the flamboyant woman. He could take her high pitched, nasally voice only in small doses. Truth be told, there was another woman that had caught his attention. Her hair was dark and her skin glowed a warm tan. He noticed that she spoke when addressed but for the most part she was quiet. And when she did speak, her voice was soft.
He caught himself staring at her more than once. Maybe it was because she didn’t make a point of walking up to him and introducing herself like so many of the other people. In fact, she acted as though she didn’t even know he was royalty. Could that be possible?
Regardless, his interest in the beautiful woman increased. It’d been a while since he’d enjoyed a woman’s company. With his pending engagement and marriage—a necessity in order to ascend to the throne—he wasn’t in a position to start anything. But for the moment, he was still a free man.
He noticed how the other men stared at this woman—even the men that were in committed relationships discreetly turned their heads when she walked by. He couldn’t blame them. She was stunning. He had to know more about her.
Noticing that she didn’t have anything to drink, he snagged two flutes of champagne. He weaved his way through the crowd, dodging attempts at conversation, on his mission to meet the mystery woman. She was difficult to catch up with as she didn’t stop to talk to any person for more than a second or two.
At last, he came up behind her. “Excuse me. I believe this is yours.”
The woman turned to him. He held the glass out to her. Her brown eyes were filled with confusion. “But I didn’t have any champagne.”
“I noticed. That’s why I retrieved this for you.”
She accepted the glass, but he noticed she didn’t drink any of it. “Are you enjoying the wedding?”
“I am. The setting is well done. And the gelato treats are unique.”
“That was the bride’s idea to help keep guests cool.”
“You know her—the bride that is?”
“I do now.”
“Ah, so you’re a friend of the groom.”
“I am now.” She smiled.
He was confused. Was this beautiful woman some sort of wedding crasher? Was that why she was quiet? He quickly dismissed the idea. There was nothing about her that said she was anything but cultured.
“I’m confused,” he said. “Are you a guest of the bride or the groom?”
“Neither. I’m their wedding planner, Bianca Bartolini.”
He hadn’t expected that response. He must be slipping. He was usually very good at reading people. It probably had something to do with the turmoil back at the palace. By the time he turned in at day’s end, he usually had a headache that kept him up until late into the night.
He needed to do something to bring peace back to the palace. If he couldn’t do that for his family, how would he ever keep peace over the nation?
He turned his attention back to his beautiful acquaintance. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Pr...erm... Leo.”
“It’s an honor to meet you.”
“You’ve done a lovely job with the wedding. The groom seems quite pleased.”
“Thankfully.”
He hesitated. “You say that like there was a chance he wouldn’t be happy.”
“I only had six weeks to plan this wedding. Six weeks. Do you know how short that is in wedding time?”
Before he could reply, Bianca was called away by the waitstaff. With a curtsy and an apology, she was gone and he found himself disappointed to see her go.
* * *
A prince.
A real live, sexy-as-sin, bona fide prince.
And he’d been talking to her. Her heart fluttered. It was all Bianca could do not to spill the drink he’d so kindly gotten for her. But she didn’t dare drink it. She had to maintain all her senses throughout the ceremony and reception. Everything had to go perfectly. Her future was riding on it.
Still, no one, including the bride and groom, had told her that the prince, whose face graced every gossip magazine, would be in attendance. Someone should have told her. She would have gone to great pains to make sure he had everything he needed.
Instead she’d stood there trying to keep her knees from shaking. And she had absolutely no idea what she’d said to him. She’d been so nervous. She’d probably made a complete fool of herself. And that curtsy. Did people still curtsy to royalty? She wasn’t up on her royal etiquette.
Her rambling thoughts and precious memories of meeting the dashing prince would have to wait until later. Right now, she had a job to do.
She approached the bride, who was waiting to walk down the aisle. “Camilla, is everything all right? What do you need?”
Camilla looked flustered. “I forgot my gift for the groom.” She paced around the study. “I don’t know how I could forget the watch. It took forever to pick out the right one. And I had it engraved.”
“Don’t worry. Everything is going to be all right.”
The bride’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “No. It’s not. This is an omen. Our marriage is doomed.”
Bianca reached out, taking the bride’s ice-cold hands in her own. “I just need you to breathe. Can you do that?”
“But—”
“No but’s. Just breathe. Inhale. Deeply.” Bianca demonstrated, hoping the bride would follow her example.
Camilla nodded. Her chest visibly expanded.
“And now breathe out.” When the bride did as instructed, Bianca said, “Again.”
Once the bride was looking a bit calmer, Bianca said, “You keep taking those deep breaths, and I’ll be right back. This is all going to work out. I promise.”
Bianca let go of the bride’s hands and rushed out of the study, closing the door behind her. The ceremony was already a few minutes late. She walked calmly outside to the string octet and asked them to keep playing, entertaining the guests.
As she headed inside, her brother caught up with her. “What’s wrong? Does the bride
have cold feet?”
“No.” Bianca said it firmly. “I just have to take care of one thing.”
She dashed past her brother and headed up the stairs to the second floor. Her high heels didn’t slow her down as she headed for the bridal suite. Bianca was certain everything would be all right. This was far from her first wedding—but it was her first wedding all on her own.
Using a master key that each of the Bartolini siblings had, she let herself into the bride’s room. The bed was unmade, pillows were tossed about and there were heaps of clothes strewn everywhere. She’d known three-year-old’s who kept their rooms tidier. She’d send one of the staff up here to tidy things up before the couple turned in for the night.
It took Bianca longer than she’d have liked to locate the bride’s luggage. She searched through the carry-on first, knowing the bride wouldn’t want the expensive watch to be far from her during her flight. It was on the third try that she found what she’d come for.
With the watch in hand, she raced out of the room and down the steps. She rushed into the study where Camilla once more looked like she was just about to have a meltdown.
“Here it is.” Bianca placed the watch in the bride’s hand.
“You found it. But how? Where?”
“None of it matters. All that matters is that your groom is waiting for you. He’s starting to wonder if you’re going to walk down the aisle.”
“Oh, no! Please go reassure him that I want to marry him more than anything in the world.”
Bianca didn’t want to ask, but she felt obligated. “Are you sure you want to get married? It’s okay if you’ve changed your mind. I know you were worried about omens—”
Camilla brushed aside Bianca’s words. “I was just panicking. Everything is right now.” She glanced down at the box containing the watch. “Thanks to you.”
Bianca pressed a hand to her chest. “Me?”
“Yes. You’ve done everything to keep this wedding on track even though it was short notice, and I know I haven’t been the easiest bride. I just want to thank you.”
“You’re welcome. And now I just want to get you down the aisle.”
The bride smiled and nodded. “Let’s do this.” When Bianca turned for the door, the bride followed her. “Oh, here.” She held out the watch. “Could you put this in our room for later?”
“Certainly.” Bianca smiled and took the box. “You’re a beautiful bride.”
And with that Bianca headed out the door. She set the watch in a safe spot inside a buffet until she could get to it after the ceremony. And then she rushed out the back where all the wedding guests were looking a bit anxious.
A number of people turned her way as though wondering what she was doing and why the wedding had yet to start. The groom paced in front of the minister and the groom’s younger brother. He stopped when he spotted Bianca.
He rushed up to her. “What’s going on? Where’s Camilla?”
“Don’t worry. She’d misplaced something. But it’s been located and now the bride is ready. Shall I have the orchestra play the wedding march?”
“Yes, please. I was so worried she’d changed her mind.”
Bianca reached out and squeezed his forearm. “She loves you with all of her heart.”
“Thanks.”
As Bianca turned away, her gaze caught that of the prince’s. He didn’t make any pretense to act as though he wasn’t watching her. His stare was direct and observant. It made her heart skip a beat.
But she couldn’t stop now and talk to him—as much as she wanted. She moved to the orchestra and the wedding music started. Bianca moved toward the French doors that were now open. This was where the bride was to make her grand entrance. The bride’s father was standing outside waiting to escort his daughter down the aisle.
When Bianca saw the bride make her entrance, she backed away. She was no longer needed. All her work was done. Now she could take a seat at the back and watch the nuptials. It didn’t matter how many weddings she attended, they never became any less romantic.
And it helped that the prince was in her line of sight. She was drawn to him. His bronze skin, dark hair and mysterious eyes were so attractive. A soft sigh passed her lips. If only she could get to know him. But that would never happen.
CHAPTER TWO
WEDDINGS WERE NOT his favorite events.
But Prince Leo had to admit, if only to himself, that the element of will-they-or-won’t-they? made this particular wedding interesting. He had been leaning toward they won’t. And by the worried look that had been on the groom’s face, he had been leaning the same way.
And then the calm and unflappable wedding planner had made her entrance. She’d spoken softly to the groom and immediately put him at ease. Leo couldn’t help but watch her as she took control of the situation. Her demeanor was casual. If she’d been worried about this event reaching its happy conclusion, she hadn’t let on.
When he had to get married, he’d want someone like her to organize it. She seemed to roll with the punches as though she’d been through it a million times and knew that all would work out in the end. His sister probably wished she had a wedding planner like Miss Bartolini too.
Right now, the woman organizing the wedding was the same one who had planned his parents’ wedding. His sister had tried bringing in her own wedding planner from the nation’s capital, but the woman had caved when opposed by the queen and her crony. So his sister’s most important day was about to be his mother’s vision of how things should be without the bride’s input. Leo had tried to help, but he’d been at a disadvantage, not knowing anything about weddings.
He’d known most of his life that when he married, it would be an arranged marriage—a logical, beneficial union. The fact that his parents had planned to have him betrothed as a teenager still soured his stomach. It’d been the last thing he fought about with his father before he’d died suddenly.
It’d taken Leo years to accept that he would marry and have children with a woman he did not love. And so he’d told himself that when he married, it wasn’t going to be a big deal to him. It would be done out of duty and obligation—one more thing to tick off the royal duty list.
Love was intended for other people, like his sister. Giselle had found the love of her life and Leo couldn’t be happier for her. And that was why her wedding was so important to him. One of them deserved to be truly happy.
“Looks like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders.”
Leo turned to find the groom at his side. He smiled, happy for his childhood friend. “Not the entire world, just the weight of Patazonia.”
Benito arched a brow. “Problems at home? I hadn’t heard anything.”
“Oh. You will. Pretty soon my mother and sister are going to have a nuclear meltdown over the upcoming wedding.”
Benito laughed. “I can see that happening. Those are two really strong-minded women. You have my sympathies. I’m lucky. Even though our wedding was spontaneous, we had the perfect wedding planner. She took on the big things, including Camilla’s parents, and let us enjoy our short engagement. Maybe you should hire her.”
Leo was about to dismiss the idea when he realized this might actually work. “You were that impressed by this woman?”
Benito nodded. “Bianca is amazing. She interned with one of the greatest wedding planners in Venice. And now she has returned to her childhood home to start up her own wedding business.”
His friend wasn’t one to say things he didn’t mean. So for him to speak so highly of this Bianca, it meant a lot. If he were to consider hiring her for his sister’s wedding, she would report to him. He would at last have some control over this event that was spiraling out of control—and causing a rift between the bride and groom. Best of all, Miss Bartolini wouldn’t be a subject of the queen. Therefore, she wouldn’t be under her thumb.
“Have you met her?” Benito asked.
Before Leo could respond, Benito was off seeking out the woman who just might be the answer to his problems. The woman who might bring peace back to the nation. And quiet the gossip floating through the media of unrest in the royal household.
And with that in mind, he didn’t try to stop his friend. He was looking forward to doing business with the wedding planner. If this all worked out, he could get back to his search for a bride. And soon he would become king.
* * *
A contest.
Not just any contest but one that pitted sibling against sibling.
Bianca still couldn’t believe her parents’ will had spelled out a competition between her and her siblings to decide who would end up inheriting the vast Bartolini estate. It included the villa, the vineyard, the stables with its award-winning stallions and mares as well as hundreds of fertile acres. It was a paradise of luxury and tranquility.
The siblings who didn’t win the contest would lose their childhood home in exchange for an equivalent amount of investments and cash. The money didn’t interest Bianca. It was cold and impersonal.
All three of the Bartolini siblings had been raised to appreciate the beauty of this land. And within the walls of this vast villa were all of their childhood memories. And for Bianca, it was crucial to succeed and win this contest.
For it was here in the lush, rolling hills of Tuscany that she intended to establish a destination wedding-planning service. And she was off to a mighty fine start.
Bianca glanced around at the mingling guests. And there was her brother, all dressed up in his finest suit and tie. He definitely didn’t look like he spent his days out in the fields tending to the grape vines. In actuality, he cleaned up really well.
After the reading of their parents’ will, tensions between the normally civil siblings was running high. It took a bit but the siblings all agreed that they would go with their strengths. Gia would run the boutique hotel, aka their family’s sprawling villa. Enzo would oversee the vineyard with its world-renowned Chianti wine. And Bianca had agreed to coordinate weddings at the villa—talk about a romantic backdrop.
The Prince and the Wedding Planner Page 2
